Bowden: No Free Lunch In Acc

PLANTATION — Florida State coach Bobby Bowden uses last month's NFL Draft to explain why it is much tougher to win in the Atlantic Coast Conference than when the Seminoles entered in 1992.

"Can you believe there were 12 ACC players in the first round and 51 overall?" Bowden said. "The talent in the league is something. I know that the normal fan doesn't want to hear it, but it is the truth."

Bowden pointed out that N.C. State had three defensive linemen picked in the first round, "and people want to know why we can't run on them," he said.

As he enters his 31st season at FSU, Bowden's team is coming off an ACC championship and 8-5 season that ended in a 26-23 triple-overtime loss to Penn State in the FedEx Orange Bowl.

"We have finished in the Top 25 for 19 straight years, the longest streak in the country," Bowden said. "We have been consistent, but it is a lot harder to get in the top five. Parity has changed everything."

Bowden, who was guest of the Seminole Club of Broward County, added that few teams can afford injuries in areas where they lack depth, and one key position where the talent isn't good can really hurt a team's chances.

"Antonio Cromartie, who was drafted in the first round, didn't play last year because of an injury," Bowden said. "We had to use a bunch of young guys, and we didn't intercept a pass until the Orange Bowl. Cromartie's loss made a big difference."

Bowden, a recent selection to the College Football Hall of Fame and the game's winningest coach at 359-107-4, likes his 2006 team.

"Depending on our ability to stay healthy and find a few players in a couple of areas," Bowden said, "I feel like we could have a chance to have our best team since we won the national championship in 1999."